Srisampradaya sriVaishnav Dharma in North India

Srimate Ramanujaya Namah

SriVarvar munye Namah

Srivaishnavism in North India

Srivaishnavism is eternal as it has its genesis from Narayana Himself. It has no regional boundary. Of course during course of time it has been witnessing waxing and waning in its currency. In recent history, it got its firm base due to Sri Ramanuja (1017 to 1037 AD). Several other scholar saints (such as Ramanand of Vairagi vaishnavsim,  Ballavacharya of Pushti marg, Chaitnya Mahaprabhu of Gaudiya vaishnavism etc.) used its base to create their separate identity.  

SriRamanuja had created 74 seats entrusted to separate persons (simhasanapatis) to propagate it. However, due to lack of proper attention, later the successors of  simhasanapatis were not performing well, and it was further reinforced by creation of 8 diggaja by Sri Varvarmuni (1374 to 1443 AD). Eight diggaja were Vanamamalai Jeer, Bhattarpiran Jeer, ThiruVenkat Ramanuj Jeer, Koil Kandadai Annan, Pratibadi Bhayankar Anna, Erumbiappa, Appilai and Appilar.

            All the seventyfour simhasanapatis had operated in Tamil Nadu only where as  three of the eight diggaja,  Vanamamalai Jeer (also called Totadri Jeer), Koil Kandadai Annan (also known as Goverdhan peethadhish), and Pratibadi Bhayankar Anna carried the mission of propagating Srivaishnavism not only in North India (hindi hinterland) but also to the Himalayan kingdom of Nepal.  In the North they were popularly known as Totadri Gaddi (Gaddi means seat), Goverdhan or Annan Gaddi, and Prativadi Bhayankar Gaddi.

North India mission of Srivaishnavism

Totadari Gaddi began its north India mission about five hundred years back, followed by Prativadi Bhayankar which is found to have its  following from about past three hundred years.

Goverdhan Gaddi has got its genesis in  the tenth century  itself when Nathmuni had visited Vrindavan with his family as a pilgrim. During his pilgrimage Nathmuni established a Srivaishnava peeth, near legendry Goverdhan hill associated with the pastimes of Lord Srikrishna which later became famous as Goverdhanpeeth / Goverdhan Gaddi. At present there is an ancient Lakshmi Narayan temple near Manasi Ganga on the foot of the Goverdhan hill.  After his return to his native land Nathmuni  was blessed with a grandson whom he named Yamun to commemorate his pilgrimage to the sacred river Yamuna,  again famous for the pastimes of Lord SriKrishna.  

During course of time Goverdhan peeth was becoming oblivious and Kandadai Koil Annan (one of the eight diggaja of Varvarmuni) is caused to have revived it and it was renamed as Annan Gaddi / peeth and it is also famous as Goverdhan peeth / gaddi.

Nathmuni is also said to have caused to establish a famous SriNathjee temple near Mathura with Srikrishna as the deity. Later, to safeguard the deity against desecration being conducated by Mughals, Ballabhacharya (also called Mahaprabhuji, pushti marg, 15^th / 16 th century) established SriNathdwara in Rajasthan by shifting  the  deity from Mathura installed by Nathmuni.  

Jeers  of Totadri Gaddi and Prativad Bhaynakar (PB) Gaddi

The principal Jeers were always stationed in their headquarter in Tamil Nadu, Nanguneri for Totadari, and Kanchi for PB. They kept visiting various parts of the north as the occasion demanded. Hundreds of local mutts in the North (UP, Bihar, Madhyapradesh, Rajasthan etc and also Nepal) had separate acharyas from  local shishya who managed their mutts as well as on the delegated permission of the South Jeers carried out the propagation by inculcating shishya in the Srivaishnavism fold.

Jeers of Goverdhan peeth

Unlike Totadari and PB, Goverdhan peeth had no Jeer in Tamil Nadu. They were all stationed initially at Goverdhan, and now at SriRangji Mandir,  Vrindavan. From about 1550 AD onwards the list of successors of the peeth are known who ran the  peeth. Almost all had migrated from Tamil Nadu except one from North India.

The most towering and epoch making had been the name of Sri Rangdesika who hailed from Tanneri Argam (belonging to Vadhul / Kandadai family) situated about 13 km on the Chennai side of  Kanchi (Vishnu). He came to Goverdhan in 1819 AD when he was hardly of ten years age and he had come along with the north India visiting entourage of Anantacharya of PB from Kanchi. Subsequently the then Jeer of  Goverdhan peeth Srinivasa Charya conducted his samashryam and arranged for his due education in Varanasi. Later he succeeded Srinivasacharya as Jeer of the peeth and constructed a huge temple in 1851 following the style and architecture of Varadraj swami temple premises of Kanchipuram.

Andaal had expressed her two desires which remained unfulfilled in her lifetime. One  of offering  thousand pots of Payasam to Sundarbahu perumal of Azhgair koil near Madurai was fulfilled by Sri Ramanuj. Her second desire of visiting Vrindavan was fulfilled by Rangdesika Swamy who installed the deities similar to achal vigraha of Srivilliputtur: Goda, Rangnatha and Garuda in the sanctum. The worship of the deities are conducted following the ritualistic practices of the south Indian style of Srivaishava temples. The temple is about 45 km from the previous seat located in the foot hill of Goverdhan and the seat headquarter was thus shifted in 1851 to Vrindavan. The temple is called “Srirangji Mandir” and also “Goda Rangmannar temple”.

This new temple now receives all the respect of  Divya Desha mentioned in Alwaar pasuras of Divya Prabandham.  Although the successors of Sri Rangdesika swamy are from his lineage in the South, they are permanently stationed on the Temple premises of SriRangji, Vrindavan.

Rangdesika Swamy had a large following in UP, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan etc and also in Nepal with of hundreds of separate Mutts established by his local acharya shishya who headed their respective Mutts and was permitted to  conduct samasryam for due propagation. He established Sanskrit College in Vrindavan to propagate the Sanskrit education which produced several famous learned scholars. Sri Rangdeshika swamy published Srivaishna Tamil Scriptures by translating them in Sanskrit, viz. Tiruppavai, Edu, and several works of Pillai Lokacharya.

Sri Rangdeshika Swamy assisted by his north Indian acharyas are credited with establishing Thirumaligai  in  Kanchi, Srirangam, Tiruvali - Tirunagari, Azhwar Tirunagari to facilitate the visit of northerners to south Divya Desam.

List of important Mutts in Bihar

The following is the  principal ones and besides them there are dozens in Vrindavan of small mutts representing the principal ones in a given locality.

A.   Totadari Gaddi (Vanmamali)

1.    Mokamah about 100 km from Patna

2.    Vaisadih about 50 km from Araha (Bhojpur)

3.    Chapra about 250 km from Patna

B.   Prativad Bhayankar

1.    Gaya, Ramanuj Mutt

2.    Buxar, about 100 km from Varanasi

3.    Mokamah about 100 km from Patna

4.    Ganapatganj in North  Bihar

C.   Goverdhan Gaddi

1.    Taret about 30 km from Patna

2.    Sarauti about 80 km from Patna

3.    Hulasganj about 30 km from Gaya

4.    Begusarai

5.    Vasaanv on the bank of River Sone and about 50 km  from Arah / 70 km from Patna. (This is the richest Mutt among all diggaja Mutts in this part of the country and it is in Bihar with thousand acres of rich fertile land. The Jeer of the place is the life Trustee of SriRangji mandir management trust, Vrindavan). The present Jeer is Swamy Achutaprapannacharya.